The present invention relates to a device for enabling a pilot to maintain a conscious state while flying an aircraft at high G-forces.
Existing manned high performance vehicles are limited to the ability of the pilot to withstand the effects of accelerative G-forces on the human body. G-forces are the result of gravity and the pull against this force. For the sake of discussion, 1 G is equal to the earth's gravitational pull. 2 G's is equal to two times the earth's gravitational pull, etc. Present day methods of counteracting these effects rely on pilot straining techniques and advances anti-G pressure suits. This allows the pilot to withstand accelerative G-forces along the Gz (+) axis during advances positive G-force maneuvers only (Ref. FIG. 1, 12).
During high positive Gz (+) maneuvers, blood in the human body rushes toward the feet of the pilot. The higher the G-force, the less time the pilot can experience this before "blackout" unconsciousness occurs. The most modem anti-G suits today limit a pilot to just beyond 9 G's for just seconds prior to blackout. Each human is variable with respect to blackout time rates, as an experienced pilot will be able to experience the force longer than an inexperienced one.
In combat, the ability to withstand higher G-forces for longer periods of time results in advanced maneuverability that enemy aircraft may not be able to keep up with. Furthermore, the advent of missile technology limits the survivability of an aircraft during combat because the missile can maneuver at far greater G-forces than what a human pilot can withstand with use of existing technology.
The highest G-force a human has voluntarily withstood and survived was on a water braked rocket sled at Holloman Air Force base in New Mexico, May 16, 1958. The G-force endured was 82.6 G's for 0.04 seconds. This G-force occurred along the Gx (+) axis. The ex-Soviet Union has reported that a man could withstand 26.5 G's without blackout at an inclination of 80 degrees to the direction of acceleration. This is approximately along the Gx (+) axis. It is apparent that the human body can withstand far greater G's when "aligned" with the Gx (+) axis. For the human body, this is the preferred medical angle (PMA) for withstanding accelerative G-forces.